Horror Hunter Files 1: Jeff the Killer
by Russel Smith
Summary: In a world where the stories that keep you up at night are true, one group stands ready to keep the darkness at bay. When a deranged killer is running around Boston, will Amelia Adams be able to survive her own encouter?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Hey, everyone! Sentara here, your friendly watcher of what's happening in the here and now in The Reality Sphere and lone female of the Kings of Time. I'm not sure if you've heard or not, but the Maker of All gave us the job of telling the adventures of The Reality Sphere known. Right now, I've got one of the fun ones. I'm sure everyone reading this has heard, read, or told at least one horror story in their lives. Well, somewhere out there is a reality where those stories are actually true as much as the public would like to believe otherwise. The only thing keeping the things that go bump in the night is a group dedicated to hunting them down. These are their stories, the secret files of the Horror Hunters.

"Killer takes another victim. Still at large after three weeks and four killed," the headline read. Amelia Adams read the story through over and over again in horror as she sat at the library computer, her dread growing more and more as she went on. Each victim had the facial wounds inflicted after their necks had been slit. Amelia jumped as someone put a hand on her shoulder.

"Jumpy much?" her best friend Sam asked with a chuckle as she sat down. "What are you reading?"

"You've heard of that killer that cuts up the victim's faces, right?" Amelia asked.

"Who hasn't by now? Why, did they find another one?"

"Yeah, the last one was close to campus."

"Ooh, creepy," Sam said excitedly.

"You have no idea," mumbled a voice nearby. The two looked to see a man in his twenties staring at his computer screen. He wore a black fedora that barely concealed black hair, a green long-sleeved shirt that showed off a slim, but muscular figure. He acted like he didn't notice the two girls staring as he stroked his beard thoughtfully. "What are you thinking?" they could barely hear him murmur. If he hadn't said something, they would have assumed that he didn't know there was anyone else here. Without another word, he stood, put on the black duster that was draped over the chair he had been sitting in, and left."

"What a weirdo," Sam said. "So, what are you doing tonight?"

"I don't know, finals are coming up and I really need to ace Physics. I should probably study."

"That's boring. You're coming with me to the movies. There's a new thriller flick out that I really want to see and you know I love having someone else there."

"I really should study," Amelia said, rolling her eyes. They had this conversation every week it seemed like, and it always ended up the same way. Sam gave her the most pitiful look she could and she sighed. "All right, what's the movie?"

"They remade Friday the 13th! I already got us tickets for the last showing."

"You're insane, you know that?"

"You know you love it!"

Meanwhile, the man left the library and walked down the street, pulling the duster close around him as he felt the chill of winter. He hadn't gotten far when he turned into a dark alley way.

"Did you find anything?" a soft voice asked.

"No, no more than the usual. He's being awfully low key for him," the man said as he walked along, not looking at the being he was talking to.

"It's possible that he knows that we're on to him."

"Yeah, but I'm not going to jump to conclusions just yet. He's already killed four people. Who knows when he'll strike again?" The man stopped and looked around. "A bit odd for you to be out and about in daylight, isn't it?"

"I got bored. I figured as long as I stuck to the shadows I could avoid scaring anyone. Should I get the other two here to help us search?"

The man thought about it. "No, let them watch the bunker for now. If we really need them, I'll call them. For now, just keep an eye out. You know his style."

"Right." With that, the man moved on. The Boston air was heavy with cold and he wanted to be inside as quickly as possible. He knew that the real work would come when night fell.


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

The rest of the day passed quickly for Amelia. She went quickly through her studies and around ten left her apartment for the theater to meet Sam. When she got to the theater, Sam was bouncing on the balls of her feet with impatience. "There you are!" she cried as she caught sight of her friend. "Where have you been?"

"Relax, we still have ten minutes until it starts. Plenty of time to watch the previews." They laughed and went to buy their tickets. As the movie progressed, Amelia couldn't help but laugh to herself at the antics of the characters. If she was in that kind of situation, she'd know exactly what to do. _But then, _she thought to herself, _that's the beauty of being outside the movie._ The one time she jumped was right at the end when the villain came out of nowhere to grab one of the survivors.

"I was expecting something scarier," Sam said as soon as they were out of the theater. "That was just a bunch of jump-scares."

"I guess," Amelia said with a shrug. "I don't know why, but I just found the whole thing boring. "

"Yeah, but at least we had some fun, right?"

She pretended to think about it for a moment, then grinned. "Of course. Why else would I keep letting you drag me into movie night?" They both laughed, then Sam checked her watch.

"Oh shit! I've gotta go!" she said as she started walking away. "I've got class early tomorrow."

"Ok, I'll see you later!" Amelia said with a wave as Sam ran off. She laughed as she turned and started walking back toward her apartment. Even though she wasn't too scared during the movie, the night seemed darker than usual. She kept humming to herself to calm herself down. Then she saw something move in the shadows in an alleyway. She spun around to try and see it better, but everything was still. _Just my imagination,_ she said to herself as she shook her head with a smile.

When she turned back around, she stopped dead in her tracks. There before her, stood a young man who had to be in his teens. He wore a white hoodie with the hood pulled down so you could see his pitch black hair and the pale white face. That face, though. A face that would linger in the nightmares of anyone who survived an encounter with it. A sinister smile had been carved into the cheeks, leaving jagged scars that looked like they had been opened up again more than once. The man's eyes stared forward, wild and crazy, never blinking and constantly thirsting for something. He took a small step forward and opened that horrid mouth.

"Hi, lady, what do you think of my face? Isn't it beautiful?" Amelia took a step back when she noticed what he had in his hand. Clutched in his fist was a kitchen knife that was covered in blood. "Lady, why aren't you smiling? Don't you think my face is beautiful?" He cocked his head to the side. "Maybe you can't smile. Maybe I should make it so you can always smile!" He raised the knife and started moving forward, but just then, a large rock flashed past Amelia's head and caught the man in the face, knocking him back a step.

As Amelia quickly went down and to the side, she saw a look of surprise come into the man's eyes before he turned around and ran. Then she saw the other creature. It was impossibly tall in a black suit, pale hands and a bald head visible. What made it seem really unnatural were the many black tentacles that were coming from its back. It seemed to turn and consider her momentarily, but she couldn't be sure since it didn't have a face. "Slendy, I'll take care of the girl!" she heard a man's voice yell from behind her. "Don't let him get away!" The creature nodded and crouched low before leaping forward as it chased the man.

"Miss, are you okay? We need to get moving before he decides to try doubling back." She nodded and got up, barely registering the black duster as she started running after the man. Later, she wouldn't be able to remember the route that they took, but she remembered having to jump over fences and climbing a fire escape. Soon, they were standing on a rooftop, panting heavily. That's when she noticed who her rescuer was.

"It's you! The weird guy from the library!"

The man chuckled as he lifted his fedora and scratched his head. "Yeah, if I had a dollar for every time I've heard something like that."

"Sorry, it's just, you were in the library, then you were here, and it's all so confusing and." She paused and took a deep breath. "What was that!?"

"Which one? Jeff or Slendy?"

"Either? Both? I don't know."

"The guy's known as Jeff the Killer. He got in a huge fight to the death and ended up going completely berserk before getting his head set on fire. Any mental stability in that one is just plain gone. The tall dude is known to most as The Slenderman, but I just call him Slendy. He's my help in this sort of thing." Behind him, a pale hand grasped the top of the building and lifted the creature over the edge.

"I'm sorry, Scott, but he got away," Slendy said with his soft voice.

"Shit," the man said as he started pacing. "This isn't good. That guy's nuts."

"Well, we are assured of one thing, if you'll remember."

The man paused as he looked at the Slenderman questioningly, then realization brightened his face. "That's right! The guy never moves on to the next victim until the last one is done in!"

"Uh, that doesn't sound very good for me," Amelia said as she rose her hand.

"No, no, see this is perfect. We can keep watch on you and when he tries something, he'll-" He stopped again, this time staring at Amelia. "How much of that conversation did you understand?" he asked.

"All of it," she replied cautiously. "Why?"

The man exchanged a look with Slendy, then shook his head with what looked like amazement. "So far, I'm the only human who can understand what Slendy's been saying. Everyone else just hears this moaning sound, which I'm still trying to understand." He started pacing again. "Anyway, back to what I was saying earlier, Slendy and I can keep guard over you so that when Jeff tries his hand again, we can nab him before anything happens."

"Hold on now," Amelia said as she held her hand in front of her. "I don't even know you people. Who are you!?"

"Oh, well if that's all, I'm Scott Johnson, this is Slendy, and we're the Horror Hunters," the man said calmly, like he was reading a menu at a restaurant.

"The _what_?"

"Don't look at me, the name was his idea," Scott said as he gestured over his shoulder to where Slendy was looking over the edge of the building.

"We should probably get her back to her home," he said as he straightened up. "People might be wondering where she went." Amelia shook her head as she gazed up at his height.

"I'm sorry, but I don't understand how you expect _that_ to be able to guard me," she said incredulously as she pointed up at the blank head.

"It's simple," Scott said as he clapped his hands together. "When you're in a group, I'll blend in and keep an eye out. When you're on your own, we'll both be around to keep you safe."

"I don't know what century you think you're in, Mr. Johnson, but I don't need anyone to keep me safe. I can defend myself just fine."

"I don't doubt that," Scott said as he started back toward the fire escape, "but what I do doubt is that you would know how to handle a psychopath like Jeff when he catches you off guard. I'll admit you've got some stamina to be able to keep up with me through the route we took, so I'd give you maybe five minutes before you get caught off guard."

She stood there a moment, a little dumbfounded, the quickly walked after him. "And you think you could do better?"

"Honestly, yeah, I do. I've done this sort of thing for a few years now. I know what to do when I encounter something unexpected. Besides, I've done my research on ol' Jeffy."

She sighed and shook her head. "Fine, but I live in a one bedroom apartment. I don't have any place for you or…" She gave Slendy another cautious look, "him? to sleep."

"It's all good. I can sleep on the roof and he doesn't sleep. He'll patrol the area to be safe until morning, then he'll find a nice shady spot to hide out. Everything will be fine."

Amelia shook her head again. "Fine, but I've got classes to worry about, too."

"You let us worry about Jeff and just act like everything's normal. We'll get him."


	3. Chapter 3

Hey, guys. Sorry it's been so long. Life has thrown me quite a few curve balls since I wrote anything last. But now I'm back and I'm working on finishing this up. Right now we are on the penultimate (next to last, just because I like the word) chapter. Enjoy and look forward to the last one here in the next few days.

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><p>Chapter 3<p>

The next morning, Amelia thought it had all been a dream. She started going about her weekend like everything was normal. It was about eleven in the morning as she was sitting down to work on some classwork when she was surprised by Scott poking his head down from the rooftop. "You all right in there?" he asked.

"What are you doing on my roof!?" she cried as she peeled herself off the opposite wall.

"Like I said last night, keeping a lookout. You're a prime target for a Horror now. Your safety is our number one priority."

"But I live on the third floor! Get down from there!"

"This is the best lookout point. Besides," he said as he swung through the window, "I'm not in any danger."

"Are you insane!? What if someone had seen you? I can't have someone thinking I have strange men coming in through my window. I have a reputation to keep."

"Do you really think I want people seeing me coming from the roof?" Scott asked as he went to the fridge and started looking though it. "I've got a job to do. I don't want civilians getting involved wondering about my sanity. Anyway, Slendy didn't find Jeff and he hasn't come around here, so I think it's safe for you to at least go out and get some food because you've got nothing good here."

"Get out of there!" Amy yelled.

"I must apologize for him," came Slendy's voice from behind her. "He often forgets how to deal with being in public."

Scott felt a weight on his back and looked behind him to see Amy clutching his shoulders in fear. "Jeeze, Slendy. I thought I told you to take it easy with that teleporting trick of yours. She's not used to it yet."

"Sorry," Slendy replied.

"Get out!" Amy yelled.

"All right, all right," Scott said as he moved his hands in a calming way and moved back toward the window. Slendy had disappeared again without a word. "But seriously, get yourself some more food." With that, he pulled himself back toward the roof and out of sight. Amy sighed and shook her head.

"I don't know if I can handle this," she mumbled to herself before moving back to her homework.

It was a couple of days later that she realized that she was going to have to get used to a routine. Scott had joined her in her classes, but was polite enough to keep his distance in public and not make it obvious that he was following her. Slendy never showed up during the day, but when night fell, she would always catch that slim tall figure watching from the shadows. As nervous as he made her feel, it was nice to know the Slenderman was looking after her.

It was in the middle of history class when she appreciated them all the more. She was trying as hard as she could to keep from falling asleep when she looked out the window and screamed at the top of her lungs. There was the mutilated face of Jeff the Killer, pressed up the glass, his unblinking eyes focused solely on her. Then his mouth started moving without a sound, but she could tell what he was saying. "Smile! Smile! Smile!" the creature repeated endlessly. Then he saw Scott run from the room and ran, yelling "Smile!" over and over again.

As Scott left the building, he ran toward where he could hear screaming, Slendy pulling out of the shadows nearby. "He can't be too far ahead! See if you can cut him off!" Without a word, the gaunt figure parted ways and took a side path. Without missing a beat, Scott pulled a revolver from a pocket in his trench coat. "Jeff! You can't run forever! Just stop and we can end this civilly!"

"SMILE!" was the only response Jeff gave as he leapt down an open manhole. Scott reached the opening and started going down as Slendy ran up.

"This is how he's been getting around town! Come on!" Soon, they were running through the tunnels below the city, trying to find the yelling horror, but the echoes of his constant cries of smile soon made it obvious that they had lost him. When they emerged from a manhole somewhere in the city, Scott didn't say a word, merely walked over to a nearby brick building and slammed his fist into the side. The bricks around his fist cracked like glass and when he pulled his hand away, his knuckles were bloody. Then he felt Slendy's hand on his shoulder.

"You have to control it, Eli. If you don't, it will consume you just as it did the others," he said.

"You think I don't know that?" Scott yelled. "We had him! We were this close! And he slipped through our fingers again! How many have to die before he gets taken down, Slenderman!? How much blood is that bastard going to spill?"

"We'll get him. He won't get this one. We just need to stay calm and patient." Scott sighed and started walking.

"We should get back to her before she gets herself into trouble."

Scott walked back to where Amelia was, keeping his distance until she was back in her apartment. As soon as he was through the door, she pounced on him. "Tell me you got him!"

"He's somewhere in the sewers. I've got Slendy searching them as we speak."

"You let him get away." Amy backed away from him, a look of disbelief on her face. "You had him. He was right there and you let him go."

"No, he got into the sewers and disappeared. We can still get him."

"If you couldn't catch him this time, what makes you think you'll be able to next time? If you couldn't catch that… that thing while it was at the school, what good are you?"

"Amy, I promise you, we will catch him before he can do you any more harm than he's done. He won't get you."

Amy took a deep breath. "No. I've had enough of this. Get out of my apartment and out of my life. I don't want to see you or your friend again, Scott Johnson. Just go." Scott took a breath as though to say something, then let it out and nodded before turning and leaving the room. As he shut the door behind him, Amy wondered to herself how she was ever going to sleep again in the world that this had brought to her sight.


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

Two months passed and Amy was starting to get past her ordeal. Between time her therapist, she had managed to convince herself that her encounter with Jeff only a night terror and Scott her way of coping. She had managed to get to where she could go outside with friends without looking over her shoulder at long last. For the first time in what seemed like forever, it seemed like her life was looking up.

Finals came and went. With high grades and high spirits, Amy went back to her home town for a little vacation. It was a short plane ride followed by a taxi ride before she was talking with her mother in her parent's home in the suburbs of New York City. After a couple of days to settle in, she got a summer job at a local diner and set herself into a routine.

It was a night with a full moon and she was on her way home from a long day at work when she stopped for gas. She went inside to pay for some ice cream for later and for the gas when the cashier leaned forward.

"Listen, I don't want you to panic, but I just saw someone sneak into the back of your car."

Amy rolled her eyes. "Right. It just so happens that some creep snuck into my car on a full moon. You've been watching a few too many horror movies, pal. Thanks for the laugh, though." With a small chuckle, she turned and walked back to her car and drove off, choosing to ignore the murmur in the back of her head.

She hadn't been driving five minutes when she looked in the rear view mirror and saw him leaning forward. She couldn't even speak when she saw the knife from the corner of her eye and heard him whisper, "Don't worry, lady. I'll make sure you never stop smiling."

That's when she saw a figure step in the street in front of her and slammed on the brakes, stopping a few feet away and upsetting Jeff's balance enough to throw him back in the seat. Right at that moment, she heard the sound of metal tearing and the driver's side door was pulled from the frame of the car as thin arms picked her up. "Don't worry, we're here," Slendy whispered as he ran to where the figure stood, black trench coat blowing in the wind and his hands behind his back underneath it. There was a roar from the vehicle as Slendy turned.

"Don't let him get me," was all Amy could say.

"I won't." With that, Scott took a few steps forward as Jeff got out of the car, knife in hand. "All right, Jeff. I've got a bone to pick with you. I made this woman a promise and you almost made me break it. I've followed you all this way. It's time to end this."

"Give her to me! She's mine!" Jeff howled in rage.

"If you want her, you'll have to get through me." Jeff's smile got wider, then he charged forward, swinging wildly. In a swift movement, Scott pulled his hands from behind his back, revealing two squirt guns which he unloaded on Jeff, soaking the crazed creature and stopping him in confusion.

"I'm sure you're wondering what I'm using here. Well, I've done my research on you, Jeff. There's quite a bit about how you got your face like that. The smile and lack of eyelids are self-inflicted, but the rest of it was a fire. Bleach and alcohol, if I remember correctly. Anyway, the liquid you're currently covered in is known as Chlordane; odorless, colorless, and," he pulled out a zippo lighter and lit it, "flammable."

Without another word, he tossed the lighter at a bewildered Jeff who could only watch with terror in his eyes as the small flame flew through the air, landing at his feet and igniting the small puddle there which quickly spread all over his body. With a screech of agony, Jeff ran at Scott, hoping to take his tormentor with him, only to have Scott pick up a stick and swat Jeff aside. With the last of his energy, Jeff slowly picked himself up and stumbled in Amy's direction before falling to his knees and dying.

As he watched the flames consume the rest of Jeff's body, Scott said, "Burn in hell, Jeff." With that, he turned and walked to where Slendy had put Amy. "Here, call this number and tell them what happened here. They'll replace your car."

As he turned and started to walk away, Amy called out, "Scott! I'm sorry for what I said."

He didn't even turn as he said, "My name isn't really Scott. The people I work for wanted me to try to keep a low profile, but I'm not too good with that. My name's really Eli. This is my life."

"What are you going to do now?"

"Go back to base and look for the next case, hopefully before people die. What you should do is call that number and then do whatever you can to make what happened here just another dream. It's the only way you're going to be able to cope." With that, he walked away, not looking back once.

Field Report #65

Date: 12/19/2012

Agent Name: Jackson, Eli; Slenderman

Target: Jeff the Killer; Class L Horror

Status: Eliminated

Target exhibited unusual tactics, choosing to attack victims in dark areas away from crowds and cameras. However, target abandoned such tactics when the intended victim escaped. After some time, target was terminated by fire. Also, fuck keeping a low profile with this job. Will discuss self control progress at next face-to-face meeting.

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><p>And so the first written adventure of the Horror Hunters ends. If you're curious to find out more about Jeff the Killer, you can read about him at wikiJeff_the_Killer. For more info on the Slenderman, you can find some at wiki/The_Slender_Man. For those of you curious about what's up with Eli (that is his real name), don't worry. I won't leave you hanging for too long. The reason this chapter was so short was because I was really looking forward to starting the next one. Feel free to review telling me what you liked and what you thought sucked. I can't improve if you don't say anything. See ya!


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